A Pain That I'm Not Used To
by Lilli101
Summary: Akari has always been cheerful and independent, that's also the way she approached her new life at Waffle Island. But as trouble begins to set sail, she might collide with a totally new experience.
1. Home

**My very first story ever****. Akari x Luke from 'Harvest Moon: Tree Of Tranquillity'. **_**I do not own **__**'Harvest Moon' or any of the characters.**_

**I hope to ****improve my writing as well as my English, guess it'll take more time ;) Please review! :)**

Chapter 1: Home

Akari has been running her farm on Waffle Island for more than one year now. She gained new friends, faced a lot of challenges, happy moments, sadness and everything in-between. Nothing could ever distract her. But now as she experienced something she had never felt before, she is helpless for the first time.

_Flashback_

She was looking at the farmland at the Caramel River district – _her_ farmland! This had always been her dream, she was so excited to finally start a life of her own. Having arrived just two days ago, she felt absolutely confident that nothing is ever going to stop her, no matter how difficult it might get - big optimist, as usual.

Especially after meeting all these nice people on the island her enthusiasm grew even stronger. She loved making new friends.

'Excuse me, are you Akari?'

It took her a few seconds to drag the gaze away from her new property before she turned around to face the person behind her back. As she met with a pair of golden eyes she instantly froze, staring at the young man in front of her.

His dark, bluish hair was tied up under a flaming bandana, only leaving out the bangs which framed his face, almost covering his left eye. He wore a sleeveless white shirt underneath a brown vest, jeans, worker gloves and boots.

'Who is he?' she thought, not realizing she was still staring at him.

'U-um' he stammered 'Hi there, I'm Luke! My father Dale is running the Carpentry at the Ganache Mine District. I guess you are Akari, right?'

Silence.

His faced turned red as she kept staring at him like he was an Alien.

'Um, I'm sorry…but, err…are you mute or something?' he asked nervously. It was obvious he felt a little awkward and couldn't think of anything smarter to say.

While some people might have gotten a little offended by such a silly question, Akari didn't mind. She was finally pulled out of her dazzle and she started to laugh out loud.

'Please excuse me, I was a bit surprised to see a new face. Sorry for my behaviour.' she said, giving him a gentle smile.

'It's alright.' his face was still red as he let out a relieved laugher. 'Sorry that I just showed up today, I've been off to Toucan Island to deliver some furniture.'

'I see, no problem at all. Oh, to finally answer your question: yes, I am Akari. Nice to meet you, Luke!'

'Nice to meet you, too…Akari!' he replied with a big smile, looking at her sparkling brown eyes.

The two of them started a long conversation, sharing great sympathy for each other right away. He was curious about her roots while she was eager to hear stories about Waffle Island and its residents.

From this day forth Luke visited Akari whenever he got the time to see if everything is fine with her and the farm. She would soon realize he is a helpful kind of guy who loved spending time with his friends, just like herself. She didn't mind that he was babbling a bit too much and she thought it was cute how he could get excited over the smallest things.

He taught her how to use the axe and showed the best places to collect wood while Dale and Bo did some restoration at her house. In return she helped out at the Carpentry two afternoons a week for the first few months.

'Yay! Luke, look at this!' Akari yelled while she was running out of the coop, 'Clucky laid her first egg! This is so exciting! What shall I do, what shall I do? Oh, I know - I should make a nice dish with it! What do you think?'

'Yo, calm down!' Luke laughed out loud. 'Why don't you put it into the incubator? When you have more chicken, you can sell more eggs.' he said as he continued to chop off the tree on the small grassland opposite to her house.

'Well, duh! Don't think about profit now, this is the first egg from _my_ farm. I will rather use it as an ingredient for a special dinner tonight.'

'You know, you're still amortizing that coop I built, you better get going!' he smirked.

'You want me to smash that on your face?' She pretended to aim the egg at him.

'Haha! Alright, alright. But you better invite me over for this special dinner.'

'Ok, deal!'

'This is actually the first time in your four months here that you cook for me. Maybe I better bring along some bitters…?' he sarcastically said while rubbing his chin.

Akari let out an annoyed growl before he started to run down to Caramel River with a big grin on his face.

Time had just been flying and as she ended up playing tag with Luke, she knew she made the right decision to come here.

**Chapter 2 will follow soon. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Who's that girl?

**Here we go again.**** Hope you'll enjoy - please review :)**

Chapter 2: Who's that girl?

'Come on sweetie, don't be shy.' Akari chirped, trying to convince a little brown cow to come out to the pasture.

Hanna gave her the calf for free after Dale had finished the barn. Akari was already taking care of seven chicken and two ducks – yes, she had followed Luke's advice to use the incubator. But livestock was completely new for her. She was so grateful and excited that she named the baby cow after Hanna. Akari thought it would be a nice gesture despite Hanna's and Renee's dubious facial expression. However, as Cain was turning beet-red, trying not to roar with laughter, she reconsidered her decision and named the calf Wendy.

'That's a good girl, come here.' Wendy started to walk off the barn after Akari softly pet her head.

'Wow, I can see some progress here.' Renee said as she slowly approached the farm.

'Yeah, I think she trusts me now. I'm happy she's finally going outside after she was just sitting in the barn for the first three days. Oh hey, what brings you here, can I help you with something?'

'No thanks, I just stopped by on my way to the Caramel Falls.'

'You're going fishing, I assume?' Akari asked, pointing at the fishing rod Renee held behind her back.

'Yeah, Toby and I are trying to catch a salmon, I want to make one for dinner tonight.'

'Oh, so you're having a date? It was about time! Now it's _your _turn to make some progress.' Akari said with a big, fat smirk on her face.

Renee's cheeks instantly started to glow. 'No! No…Toby's just helping me, he's a way more experienced angler than I am, I just don't want to spend all day at the Falls.'

'Uh-huh.' Akari raised an eyebrow. 'I've known you guys for more than six months now, you cannot fool me.'

'Err….'

'Well anyway, please excuse me, I gotta go to Town to bring some fresh eggs to the Sundae Inn. Have fuuuu-huuuun!' she was waving as she walked down the path to Waffle Town, leaving the bewildered Renee behind.

Akari felt a bit sorry to tease her like that but she really thought the both of them should make some progress, it was obvious they had a big crush on each other. 'Even Candace and Julius managed to be a couple by now. Maybe I should hook them up…?' She couldn't help but giggle at the thought of her being a matchmaker. 'Ha, this idea is stupid enough to get Luke on board. Toby is one of his best friends after all, I'm sure he'll help me.'

As she arrived at the entrance of the Sundae Inn her name was called before she reached the door knob. 'Yo, Akari!'

'Hey Luke!' she yelled. 'I missed you at the Carpentry this morning, Dale said you would be at Toucan Island.'

'Yeah, I was.' he replied. 'Samson needed some help renovating a room at the Pineapple Inn.'

'I should go there sometime, too. I only met Samson and Sue at the Ocean Festival once.' Akari reflected.

'Sure, we should go there together, this place is awesome!' Luke's eyes started to sparkle. 'The weather is great all year, we could go fishing, or swimming in the sea, enjoy --'

'Um, Luke…', her voice softened as she cut him off, 'why is your face so red all of a sudden?'

'Err…well, it was so hot over there, being back in the cold autumn air now probably makes my cheeks glow. Plus I just came running from the docks.'

At that moment a person slowly appeared behind his back, laying a hand on his shoulder. 'Luke, is this the Sundae Inn?'

Akari gazed at the strange girl. Her dark, red hair was pinned up at the top of her head, green eye shadow and tanned skin highlighted her purple eyes.

'Yeah, this is the bar I told you about.' he replied to the girl's question.

'Then where is this guy called Hayden, can I talk to him now?' she asked.

Even at the lightest move her bracelets and golden jewellery belt created a jingly sound. Her clothes looked like a princess' dress from "1001 Nights".

'Harrumph!' Akari cleared her throat. She already started freezing only looking at this girl whose belly was just covered by a thin net lace material.

'Oh, excuse me', Luke suddenly spluttered, 'this is Selena, Samson's and Sue's daughter.'

Selena raised a brow and wrinkled her nose. 'You happen to work at this bar?'

'No.' Akari replied quietly. 'I'm running a farm at the Caramel River District. I'm Akari by the way, nice to meet you.'

'Um…it's Selena's first time to be on Waffle Island.' Luke nervously rolled his eyes.

'I see. Well, I hope you'll enjoy your visit here.' She said as kindly as she could despite Selena's depreciatory glance.

'Actually it will be the residents of Waffle Island who'll enjoy my visit – I'm going to start a dancing career here at Hayden's bar.' she noted with a haughty grin on her face.

Akari took a deep breath. 'Well, she surely is self -confident. Not to say narcissistic. No, I just met her, I shouldn't be hasty. Let her settle in first.' she becalmed herself.

'If you'd excuse me now, I have some work to do.' Akari said.

'Luke, come on, let's go in, I need to talk to Hayden!' Selena urged.

'Um…yeah, sure. Akari, see you after lunch? I'll bring the kitchen shelf you ordered.'

'Oh, it's finished already? Sounds great!' she replied with a gentle smile. 'See you!'

Selena grabbed Luke's arm and pulled him into the Inn while Akari started to walk back to her farm. Five minutes later she realized she was still carrying the basket with the chicken eggs she should give to Yolanda. 'Gosh, I cannot believe I forgot the delivery! Stay focused Akari, will ya? Argh!' she mumbled as she turned on her heels and went back to the Inn.

'Hello everybody', she yelled as she opened the door, 'how are--' She almost dropped the basket at the sight of Selena performing a belly dance in front of Hayden, Kathy and Jake. As she looked around she found Luke leaning against the kitchen door, nervously staring at the ceiling with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Colleen, Yolanda and Maya stood around the counter observing the scenario. Besides the oriental sounding music you could only hear the noise of Selena's clashing jewellery.

Akari slowly approached Maya. 'So this is Waffle Island's future superstar, huh?'

'Well, if you ask _me_, her way of dancing is a little bit too showy!' Maya whispered. She sounded like a little sullen child.

Two seconds later Chase came in with three big bags of groceries. 'Oh, is there a travelling circus in town?' he casually muttered as he passed by.

While Maya followed him to the kitchen, Akari bit her lips to hold back an upcoming laugh. Luke almost failed by hiding his, luckily he put his hand over his mouth quickly enough.

Selena didn't seem to notice the general amusement. The moment the music stopped she raised her chin and put her right hand on her hips. 'So, don't you think you could use this kind of classy entertainment in your town?' she asked, slightly raising the left corner of her mouth.

Her question was followed by an awkward silence.

**To be continued. ****Thanks for reading!**


	3. The truth is

**This chapter turned out a bit longer . I promise to build some more tension soon :) Thanks for the first review! Please, please continue, feedback is very appreciated! :)**

Chapter 3: The truth is…

'Phew!' Luke was wiping off the sweat from his forehead. Although it was freezing outside in the snow, he took off his jacket before he continued to abrade a big piece of wood.

'Look at this hard working guy!' a girl's voice chuckled.

'Yo Akari, what's up?'

'Oh, not much, I'm on my way to the Blacksmith's Shop, I need Ramsey to fix my sickle.' she replied. 'I thought about grabbing some food at the Inn afterwards. Wanna join?'

'Sure.' he agreed. 'By the way, how's work going these days? You have enough wood left for heating?'

'Yup. There's not so much to do since winter came, I already had plenty of time to collect wood. The few crops left on the field are watered in no time and my animals stay inside most of the time. So nowadays I'm finished with work around noon.'

After a few seconds of silence Luke suddenly started to smirk.

'What's with that silly grin on your face?' She raised a brow trying to look serious but she couldn't help smiling. She thought Luke always looked like a little rascal when he grinned like that.

'You just put an idea in my head.' he declared. 'At the rate of your current workload how about taking one day off sometime this week? We could finally go visit Toucan Island. I don't know how you feel but I could use a little break from winter.'

'You know, that's actually a good idea. No, a _brilliant_ idea!' she exclaimed. 'I will call Hanna and Cain later to see if they could watch the farm for one day. I think I remember them saying that Gray would help on the ranch this Saturday, so they might have some time then. Would this work for you? You think your dad will let you ditch work?'

'Yeah, no problem. We don't have new orders at the moment and I'll be finished with repairing Shelly's dresser today.'

'Great!' she cheered. 'I gotta go see Ramsey now but I'll be back later to pick you up for lunch. See ya!' she yelled as she walked away.

'See you.' he whispered smiling.

Toby walked along Maple Lake whistling a random melody. 'Hey you two!' he waved his right hand at Akari and Luke while he held a wrapped box in his left.

As the two of them approached him, Luke's eyes started to get as big as dinner plates. 'Heeeeeeey, for whom you got that present there?' He put on his rascal face again.

Toby turned beet-red instantly. 'Err…you know, today's Winter Thanksgiving, so…' He cleared his throat.

'It's for Renee.' Akari smiled.

'Yup.' he replied inwardly, hardly audible for the human ear.

Luke gave him a strong slap on the shoulder. 'Haha, well then – GOOD LUCK, buddy!' he bellowed.

Toby's embarrassed face froze for a few seconds. 'W-well...err, I-I see you guys later.' he quickly bid farewell and walked up to Ganache Mine District.

'We did a good job, huh?' Luke grinned as he reflected how he had forced Toby to ask Renee to dance with him at Maya's birthday party. 'I will never forget his silly face when she said yes.' he giggled.

'Yeah.' Akari smiled. 'One week later I finally convinced Renee to ask him out for a proper date. That was a though one!' She laughed out loud.

'At least they managed to stand on their own feet by now. Kids grow up so fast!' he joked with a fake weep.

As they entered the Sunday Inn, Maya welcomed them. 'Hey, look who's here! Nice to see you! How are you today?'

'Hungry!' Luke yelled as he sat down at a table next to the counter.

Akari rolled her eyes. 'Please excuse his lacking sense of humor, Maya. We'd like to have some lunch. What's on today's menu?'

'We have pumpkin soup and buckwheat noodles with egg.' she replied.

'Gimme the noodles. And banana pudding for desert please.' Luke said.

Akari sat down opposite of him. 'I'll go with the soup, thanks!'

'Anything for you!' Maya smiled as she went to the kitchen.

'So Akari', Luke suddenly commenced, 'um…are you actually going to Jin's New Year's party?'

'Absolutely! He makes the best miso soup in town.' she grinned. 'You're going, too?'

'Yeah...' He cleared his throat as he slid around on his chair. 'Wanna go together…?'

'Sure!' she instantly replied. 'I need some help carrying the food anyway.'

He stared down at the table. It took a few seconds until he looked at her face again. 'You're going to contribute something to eat…? Ah well…Jin's a doctor, I'm sure he's got plenty of medicine at home.' he teased.

'Don't start with me!' she ironically threatened. After she explained him how Yolanda helped her gaining more culinary skills, Chase appeared carrying two bowls.

'That's one pumpkin soup for Akari and buckwheat noodles with egg for you.' he said as he put the food on the table. 'By the way Luke', he suddenly started, 'where is your exotic friend? I haven't seen her for days.'

'Hm?' Luke mumbled as he already started to shove the noodles into his mouth. 'You mean Selena? She caught a cold and went back to Toucan Island to recover. Guess she's not used to the cold winter here yet.'

'Oh great.' Akari thought to herself. 'So she's going to be there on Saturday, too.' She remembered the day Hayden told Selena he would hire her as a dancer if she'd perform a more conservative dance. Everybody who was in the same room that moment seriously thought she's going to explode. But Selena accepted in the end. Afterwards she explained to Luke it had always been her dream to become a dancer, so she was willing to make compromises. When he told Akari about it, she felt sorry she thought Selena was just a haughty, narcissistic person. She understood her urge - if anybody knows how it feels to have a dream and wanting it to come true, it's Akari. So starting that day she seriously tried to become friends with the red haired dancer who rejected her efforts with nothing but nasty behaviour. The only person Selena would ever cling to was Luke. Akari was surprised to hear the two had known each other since they were five. Eighteen years ago Dale started business with Samson and Luke came along whenever his father had a job at the Pineapple Inn.

'Don't you wanna eat, is there something wrong?' Chase pulled Akari out of her dazzle.

'Um…no, everything's fine, thanks.' she replied as she took the spoon and started to eat.

The following Saturday morning Akari met Luke at the docks to set sail to Toucan Island. She was grateful that Hanna agreed to take care of her farm that day. Summer and autumn season had been so busy, it was a nice change to have one day off spending time with her best friend - which she thought was missed out too much during the last six moths.

As Akari walked off the boat the sunlight was so bright she had to put on her sunglasses. She let out a dreamy sigh at the view of white sand and the wide, turquoise ocean.

'Great place, huh?' Luke inhaled a dose of the warm, slightly humid air with a deep breath. 'Let's just quickly drop our stuff at the Inn and go back to the beach right away!'

'Hmpf.' she wrinkled her nose at the chance of meeting Selena again.

'What is it? You rather wanna look around first or –'

'Oh err, no, no!' she replied 'It's ok, let's go.'

'Luke, Akari, what a nice surprise!' Sue yelled. 'Samson, look who's here!' She gave them both a big hug.

'Akari, I haven't seen you for months, you finally managed to visit us!' Samson said with a big smile. 'How's your farm going? I hope bloody old Dale and his lousy son treat you well.' he smirked.

'Haha, yeah, they managed to adopt some manners meanwhile.' she replied giggling. 'Everything's fine, thanks! It's nice to see you again!'

'Hey, watch it, you two!' Luke laughed. 'Oh, before I forget, dad and Bo asked me to send their best regards. They want to visit you again soon. By the way, how is Selena doing?' he inquired.

'She's up in her room taking a nap. Her cold hasn't cured just yet. But she's feeling better already, thanks for your concern. I'm sure she will be happy to see you guys.' Sue mentioned. 'Please return our regards to Dale and Bo, I can't wait to see them again. But why don't you two enjoy your time now first? You can change clothes upstairs, I arranged a room for each of you. Go outside and have fun, I'll prepare some lunch later.' She smiled.

'Thanks a lot!' they both replied simultaneously.

Fifteen minutes had passed when Akari knocked at Luke's door. 'Are you ready?'

'Gimme five more minutes, I was on the phone with my dad.' he answered.

'Aww, little Lukey is missing his daddy already!' she joked with a childish voice.

'Oh, shut up! We were talking business, okay? If you don't want me to abandon you out in the sea, you better behave!' he teased and heard her laugh in response. 'Why don't you go ahead already, I'll meet you at the beach.' he suggested.

'Alright.' she still chuckled as she went down the stairs.

Four minutes later Luke stepped out of his room wearing swim trunks and a towel around his shoulders. As soon as his hand went off the knob another door squeaked open and Selena sneaked a peak at the corridor. 'Luke?', she whispered, 'is that you?'

'Oh, hi Selena!' he turned around. 'I hope I didn't wake you up. How are you, feeling any better?'

'Yes, a little bit. But I will never get used to cold weather.' She coughed as she was still standing in the doorway of her room. 'I wanted to give you a call already and ask you to come over for a little winter break. I'm glad you came to see me on your own.' She leaned her head against the door frame as she put on a dozy smile.

'Well, I…' he wanted to tell her he came here to show Akari around the island and that she was waiting for him outside but then he looked at Selena's big purple eyes. Did she do this puppy look on purpose? 'Yeah, err, good to hear you're doing better already.' he gave in. After a few seconds of silence he cleared his throat. 'You know, actually Akari is here, too. She will be happy to see you. Wait a minute, I will get her.' He turned on his heels to go downstairs.

Selena raised a brow with a depreciative look on her face. 'No, wait!' she requested. 'Do you have a minute first? I need to ask you something.'

'Uh…sure.' he replied and she invited him to enter her room. As he took a seat on the couch she sat down right next to him, burying her hands into her lap.

'You know, my parents and I are really glad that you helped us so much during the last months, so we wanted to invite you spending New Year's Eve with us.' Selena looked down to the floor as she started to blush. 'My mum and I will prepare a great feast! Of course Dale and Bo are welcome to join, too!' she joyfully declared, her sparkling eyes staring at him.

Luke gave her a soft smile. 'Wow, I'm really stunned, thank you very much!' he replied. 'B-but...I'm sorry…actually I-I already accepted Jin's invitation to his New Year's party. A-and I p-promised…I promised Akari t-to go with her.' he stammerd as his face turned red. He obviously felt ashamed to refuse her. 'B-but I'm sure my dad and Bo will delightedly accept your invitation!' he tried to compensate for his rejection.

Selena instantly loured and looked down to the floor again which made him feel even more miserable. 'I am so sorry, I really don't wanna hurt you! It's ju-', he was cut off when she raised her hand in front of his face.

'Do you love her?' she suddenly asked.

Luke's jaw literally hit the ground. He couldn't say anything - he just sat there, completely baffled.

Tears started to fill Selena's eyes. 'So you do?' she broke the two minutes of silence which seemed like hours to her.

He stood up to walk around, his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked at her biting his lower lip as if he didn't know what to say. He felt terrible to see the tears slowly running down her cheeks. Considering that an excuse or a lie would make things more complicated he decided to be honest with Selena. Another minute of silence had passed as he finally whispered: 'I do.'

**Thanks for reading!**


	4. Helpless

**This chapter turned out a little shorter again, I'll stuff the next one a bit more ;)**

**Please read & review, much appreciated! Thanks and I hope you'll enjoy! :)**

Chapter 4: Helpless

Selena just sat on the couch, sobbing, the glow from her cheeks disappeared.

'Please stop crying!' Luke sat down next to her, laying his hand on her thigh. 'I really didn't mean to hurt you! If New Year's dinner means so much to you, I will-'

'It's not about the damn dinner!' she yelled. 'How can you be so blind?' She shoved away his hand and stood up; she couldn't face him right now. 'Haven't you realized in all those years that I…', she crossed her arms in front of her chest, 'I…like you…?'

'I like you, too, Selena, what-', he suddenly froze for a few seconds. 'Oh! Wait…y-you mean…you really…_like_ me…?'

'Well, duh! Congratulations! You are the biggest idiot on this island - no, in the whole world!' she exclaimed as tears kept rolling down her face.

So that's why she suddenly asked about Akari, it finally dawned to him. And he just blurted out the truth – but only to help Selena understand why going to Jin's party was so important to him. Well done, Luke! At that moment he _did_ feel like the biggest idiot on earth. He knew he was no smarty-pants, especially when it comes to love; the feelings he developed for Akari were a new experience for him after all. But still, he felt so distressed not noticing how much Selena liked him all this time.

'I-I don't know what to say. There is no excuse for my stupid behaviour…I'm such a fool!'

'At least you got _that_ right! Now leave, I want to be alone!' she sobbed.

'Selena, I-'

'I said _leave_!' she pointed at the door.

He stood up and slowly walked towards the corridor. As he reached the doorway he turned around again but Selena kept staring at the floor. 'I am so sorry' he whispered before closing the door.

He remained at the hallway for several minutes, motionless. What should he do now? He just came to one conclusion: he wouldn't tell Akari – neither about this scene, nor about his own feelings, ever. He thought spending New Year's Eve together seemed like a good opportunity to get closer to her, but now he was afraid to possibly ruin another friendship. He couldn't stand the thought of loosing Akari in any way.

His next concern was how he should act towards Selena; could they become anything like friends again, at all? Should he try to talk to her again tomorrow or give her some more time first? He didn't know. If there only was somebody he could pour his heart out to! He felt like a selfish jerk only thinking about how to relieve his mind but he could really use some good advice. The only person who could help him now was his dad! He decided to go home right away; he couldn't just spend the day here while Selena was up in her room, crying.

When he walked down the stairs at the entrance of the Inn, he saw Akari collecting shells at the beach. She wore a mint green bikini with a white polka-dot pattern, her slender body was moving as if she walked on air; a pink lily was tucked in her hair which she had randomly tied up to a small knot. Luke paused for a moment, he couldn't help but staring at her.

Seconds later he shook his head as if he just awoke from a daydream. 'Pull yourself together, man!' he told himself and took a deep breath as he walked down to the beach.

'There you finally are! Haha, I already thought you'd be too abashed to show yourself in public just wearing bathing togs.' Akari joked. Just at that moment she noticed that he actually had nothing to be ashamed of. His torso showed a flat belly and distinctive loins, his arms looked strong and trained – boy, all this wood chopping really paid off! In general his whole body was muscular but not excessively. No hair on his chest but the few underneath his belly button formed a straight line which ended somewhere below his swim trunk waistband.

Akari cleared her throat. 'Err, look, I found some beautiful shells around here. There even was a tiny pearl, isn't it-', she suddenly realized his face was white as a sheet. 'Oh my god! Luke… what's wrong? You're so pale, are you sick or something?'

'T-to be honest I don't f-feel so good.' he stammered.

'You really look bad! Let's get you home, you better go to bed.' She put her right hand on his forehead. 'You don't have a fever but you might be coming down with a cold. Have you met Selena yet?' she asked.

'What? W-why are you asking?'

'Well, maybe you contracted an infection from her.' she naturally explained.

'Oh! Err…y-yeah, I shortly talked to her a few minutes ago.' He breathed a quiet sigh of relief. 'But why don't you just stay here, I don't wanna ruin your-'

'Balderdash! Of course I come with you! I wouldn't leave you alone in this condition, you little idiot.' She gave him a gentle smile.

There he was, being an idiot yet again. Although this time it was an ironic expression, he wouldn't disagree.

'Akari…I'm so sorry!'

'Don't be silly! Your health comes first and we will find another time to come here again. Now let's quickly get changed and say goodbye to everyone.' she suggested. 'I just hope you'll get better soon – you know, I need some help to repair my fence next week.' she winked at him with a smirk.

Once they arrived back on Waffle Island, Luke instantly headed to his home after he apologized to Akari one more time.

'Get well soon!' she yelled as his silhouette was disappearing behind a curtain of snowflakes. She stood at the docks for a few more seconds before deciding to release Hanna from her duty right away. Less than three hours had passed since her and Luke had left to Toucan Island this morning. She put on her woolly hat which she had just pulled out of her rucksack and fought her way through the snow.

As she arrived at her farm it seemed untouched; the few crops on the field were dry and when she looked after her animals, there was no fodder in the feeding troughs. Assuming that Hanna probably just couldn't manage to come over yet, Akari entered her house.

She tried to call Hanna, let her know she wouldn't need to help out today but there was no answer. She went outside again to feed her animals first before she attempted the second call and a third one five minutes later. As there still was no answer, she determined to visit Brownie Ranch to check if everything was alright.

She walked her way through Maple Lake District but when she reached the junction which led to Soufflé Farm and Ganache Mine District, she abruptly stopped. In the distance she saw a bunch of people who seemed to stand in a circle. Through the heavy snowfall she couldn't clearly recognize who it was. She slowly started to approach the small crowd but somebody suddenly turned around and came running towards her. She stopped several meters ahead of the scenario as she realized it was Hanna.

'Oh Akari, it's you!' she gasped. 'It's so terrible!'

'What's the matter? Is there something wrong?' Akari inquired with a puzzled face. Next she realized Hanna had tears in her eyes. 'What is it? What happened?' she didn't want to raise her voice but the whole situation started to scare her.

'We…Gray was…and then…the horse…he couldn't…oh…' Hanna was panting for air.

'Please calm down. Tell me what happened. Was there an accident?' Akari put her hand on Hanna's shoulder, trying to comfort her somehow. Her gaze kept wandering at the occurrence in front of her while she was starting to get anxious.

'G-Gray took a ride through Praline Forest…suddenly his horse got scared and it…it ran away in panic. I was just on the way to your farm when…when it happened.'

'When _what_ happened? Did somebody get…injured?' Akari asked although she was afraid to hear the answer. As Hanna was nodding in response she instantly started to run - her head was still full of questions but at that moment she was too worried to care about the details of the incident.

It only took her a few seconds to cover the short distance; she stopped right behind four people who were standing in a row and a fifth one kneeling on the ground. Now she could recognize it was Craig, Bo, Anissa, Owen and Dale. To their left side Jin was talking to Irene, both having a serious look on their faces. As Hanna joined the scene again, Perry and Simon suddenly appeared carrying a stretcher.

'Oh good, you're here! Ok guys, let's get him to the hospital quickly!' Jin exclaimed. When everybody started to move, Akari realized somebody was lying on the floor.

'Luke!' she gasped.

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	5. In your memory

**Thank you so much for your motivating reviews! ^^ P****lease continue to R&R. Thanks & I hope you'll enjoy this one, too! :)**

Chapter 5: In your memory

When he opened his eyes, there was a blurry, bright light – it looked like a typical movie scene when somebody is waking up in hospital, looking at the ceiling lamp.

He tried to sit up but he literally did it in slow motion as he felt a pain in his head and chest. He had to wink several times before he could recognize something and finally realized he was in Meringue Clinic. As he looked around he saw somebody sleeping on the bed next to him.

'Luke!', Dale yelled as he entered the room. 'Jin, please come here, he woke up!'

'Dad, please keep it down, my head…'

'Oh, I'm sorry, son! I was just so excited to have you back.' Dale smiled while he carefully pet Luke's shoulder.

'Luke.', Akari whispered with a dozy grin. She hopped from the bed, went to his side and softly laid her hand on his. Her hair was a little mess and her blurred mascara had created light grey circles underneath her eyes. But she didn't care. 'I'm so glad you finally woke up. How do you feel?'

He gave her a strange look as if he was completely baffled. Before he could say anything, Jin came in. 'Luke, great to see you up! How do you feel?', he repeated, not knowing Akari had just asked the same question.

'My head and chest hurt. And I feel a little dizzy', Luke replied. 'Um, can you tell me what exactly happened? And how long have I been…unconscious?'

'Actually you were almost overrun by a horse. You suffered a concussion, several bruised rips and some contusions but it could have been much worse', Jin explained. 'You have been nonsentient for the last three days. Luckily the horse', he gestured quotation marks with his fingers, '"just" hit you and didn't really run over you.'

Luke thoughtfully listened to him and nodded.

'It will take several weeks until you're completely recovered but you will be as good as new', Jin smiled. 'For now you should still stay here, just to be safe.'

'Whatever you say, doc! Thank you!' Now Luke looked back at Akari. 'Err, I don't want to be rude or something…um…you seem to know me but could you please tell me who you are?'

Bang! You could literally hear Akari's and Dale's jaws smashing on the floor. Jin squinted for a second before he said: 'Err, can I talk to you for a minute? Luke, please excuse us.'

'Sure.' he shrugged in response and they left the room.

Out in the hallway Jin was about to say something but then he looked at Akari's puzzled, sad face and laid a hand on her shoulder first. 'Don't worry, this sometimes happens when people are concussed. It's called retrograde amnesia, he doesn't remember everything that happened before his accident. But actually there's one thing that surprises me...'

Akari and Dale both raised their brows simultaneously. 'Patients with a retrograde amnesia usually only loose some weeks but Luke doesn't remember Akari', at those words she was shaking, 'which means he almost lost eight months of his memory.' Jin started to rub his chin.

'Oh my, that's bad, isn't it?' Dale was frowning.

'I wouldn't necessarily say so. Just the period of time he lost is different to what I experienced before, otherwise his behaviour seems normal. We will do some more examinations and make sure to watch him any minute. I promise I will do whatever I can to help Luke.' he proclaimed. 'Actually you can also help to retrieve his memory; just tell him about the last months, show him some pictures. It cannot do any harm and in most of the cases this has been the most successful method.'

'Thank you so much, Jin!' Dale said with a sigh of relief.

'You two should get some rest now, you hardly left his side since we brought him here.'

Akari sighed. 'I should go home, I don't want to overstrain him right now.'

'I will stay here', Dale replied grabbing Akari's arm, 'and tell him all the great stories about you! So make sure to come back tomorrow' He winked at her.

'Thanks a lot! Both of you!', she exclaimed with a gentle smile. 'Please excuse me now, Hanna and Renee kindly took care of my farm for the last three days, I should give them a break.' She smiled once more before she left the clinic.

When the news about Luke spread on Waffle Island, absolutely every resident paid him a visit, summing up the last months. Each of them told a different story – above all he was surprised to hear Toby and Renee had become a couple by now. It didn't ring a bell when they declared it was his and Akari's 'fault'. He pictured himself being a matchmaker - and couldn't believe it!

Akari herself passed by whenever she could, reporting about her farm and showing him pictures; how they built the first snowman just three weeks ago or the one of the big tuna they once caught – although she had to give credit to Ozzie for that one.

Luke was amenable to her and her careful approach but after one week there still was no progress at all; she had to admit she was a bit disappointed. But it consoled her that he showed the same 'sympathy at first sight' as when they (actually) first met.

It was the tenth day after Luke's accident when an unexpected visitor was knocking at the door of his sickroom. He heard the very familiar sound of clashing jewellery.

'Oh, hi Selena', he mumbled, his cheeks full of banana pudding which Colleen just brought him.

She stood in the doorway with an insecure look on her face – very unusual for her. 'Dale told me about your accident.' She cleared her throat. 'He said you lost parts of your memory?'

'Yeah.' He gulped the last bit of his pudding. 'It feels so strange not knowing what happened during the last months. And this girl, Akari, she's so nice - I don't know why but somehow it kills me that I don't know anything about her!'

Selena closed the door and sat down on a chair next to his bed. 'Don't worry about that now, this whole situation must be terrible for you! I was worried sick, so I came to see you.'

'What took you so long?' he smirked.

'I didn't know if I should just come here after-…well, never mind.'

'So, I guess you also have a nice story up your sleeve to refresh my memory?' He lifted the left corner of his mouth.

'Actually I do', she smiled.

As Selena started talking, Akari entered the clinic and met Irene at the reception desk. 'Good afternoon!' she yelled.

'Well, somebody seems to be in a good mood today!'

'Yup! Dale gave me the pictures from the last Ocean Festival when Luke won the "Melon Eating Contest".' Akari couldn't help but laughing out loud. 'He had so much fun back then, maybe this will jog his memory. Can I go up or is he asleep just now?'

'To be honest I'm not sure, I just came back from the General Store', Irene replied. 'But when I left him, Colleen was bringing something to eat; I guess he prefers food over sleeping.' She giggled. 'I'm sure he's happy to have another visitor.'

'Ok, thanks! I will be as quiet as a mouse, just in case', she said before she was tiptoeing up the stairs. When she arrived at the door of Luke's room, she slowly opened it and silently sneaked a peek inside. She saw Selena leaning over to him, carefully taking his face into her two hands.

'Maybe this will help', she said before passionately crushing her lips to his.

Akari instantly winced at that picture. She took two steps back from the door and paused for a moment. She could feel her heart beating heavily, as if it was about to break her ribcage. Suddenly her feet started to walk back to the door, she couldn't help it. After hesitating a few more seconds she took another look inside. Selena was slowly moving away her face from his.

'So?' She put on a complacently smile.

Silence. Luke's brain was obviously busy; it looked like he was calculating mathematical formulas. 'Wait, I…I think I…remember something.' He easefully rolled his eyes.

At that moment the girls' eyes stared to get as big as dinner plates, waiting for him to say something. All of a sudden Akari's stomach let out a loud growl and she backed off.

'What was that?' Selena looked around while Akari was still standing in the hallway, unable to move. She felt so embarrassed, all she wanted to do was running away. But she knew they would hear her so she worked up all her courage and knocked at the door.

'H-hello! How are you tod– oh, Selena! What a nice surprise!' At that moment she began to feel sick. It was difficult for her to still pretend she liked Selena. Akari had always been straightforward, she hated to lie; but she kept doing it for Luke's sake.

Selena wrinkled her nose. 'Luke's making some progress here, now be quiet and let him talk.' Akari choked her upcoming anger and looked at Luke – his presence always had this strange, comforting effect on her.

'I…', he put his hand on his head and looked at Akari.

'It's ok, Luke, take your time', she said laying her hand on his shoulder.

'Sssh,' Selena hissed.

He kept thinking for a few more seconds when he suddenly shrugged as if he was struck by lightning. 'Akari! We…we were at Toucan Island…it was…it was snowing when we came back…'

A relieved smile spread on Akari's face. Before she knew it she gave him a hug.

'Ouch!' he flinched.

'Be careful, you're hurting him!' Selena yelled.

Akari backed off, trying her best to ignore the red-haired teaser. 'Luke, I'm so sorry, please forgive me!' Tears of joy started to fill her eyes.

Luke didn't say anything; he just kept staring at Akari as he was suddenly pressing his lips against hers.

**Thanks for reading!**


	6. The things you said

**S****orry that this chapter turned out more boring, I have to admit I suffered a slight writer's block as the soccer fever caught me ^^ I will use this chapter as a bridge to build more tension again. I promise to bring in more of LukexAkari soon :)**

**I'd like to thank you all for reading**** and reviewing, please continue, always much appreciated :) Thanks & I hope you'll enjoy!**

Chapter 6: The things you said

Luke and Akari gazed into each other's eye, his hands lying on her shoulders, as Selena stormed out of the room.

'Luke…what…' Akari didn't know what to say, or even think. She felt her cheeks glowing. 'I…I can't…what…what was that?' Well, a kiss, obviously!

'I…I'm sorry! I-I was just so surprised a-and confused. I don't know w-what the hell came o-over me! Please forgive me. I…I mean, I was _really_ confused-'

Akari tried to gather herself. 'N-no, don't worry, i-it's ok.' She took a deep breath. 'I understand it must have been a shock for you to have your memory back all of a sudden.'

'Akari, I-', she cut him off by shaking her head.

'No really, it's ok. Please don't worry.' She was breathing evenly again when she looked at the door. 'But I wonder where Selena went.'

Luke clapped his hand over his mouth. Selena! He completely forgot about her. She kissed him just a few minutes earlier! He suddenly began to frown. Wait a minute – there was something she had told him before. Something he couldn't remember, even now that he retrieved his memory.

'Maybe I should look after her.' Akari fetched him from his thoughts. She was surprised that she seemed to care about Selena. Maybe she was just looking for an excuse to leave as well. Did she feel so uncomfortable to be by Luke's side at this very moment? She had to admit the answer was yes.

'I will be back soon.' She paused. 'And then we can talk…unhurriedly.'

Luke just nodded before she walked out and met Irene at the hallway. 'Akari, what happened? I saw Selena dashing out of the clinic.'

'Yeah, I'm just on way to catch her. Could you please do me a favour and get Jin? Luke seems to have recovered his whole memory again.'

'Really? Oh, that's great!' Irene yelled. 'Alright, I will call Jin right away, you go ahead and look for Selena. Don't worry, dear, I will not leave Luke's side.' She smiled.

'Thank you!' Akari said before running down the steps. She looked around Waffle Town and it didn't take long until she could spot the dancer at the docks – her shimmering red hair was hard to be overlooked.

'Selena, please wait!' she yelled approaching her.

Selena stopped and just stood there until Akari reached her side. 'What?' she hissed.

'Why did you run away like that?'

'I'm going back home, leave me alone.'

Akari paused for a moment before making an educated guess why Selena could be so distressed. She decided to take a leap in the dark: 'The kiss was just a sudden reaction. Luke was confused and overwhelmed.'

Selena turned around, her cheeks glowing red from anger. 'What do _you_ know? I said leave me alone!' As she took another step towards the boat at the port, Akari suddenly whispered: 'I know that you're in love with him.' A strange feeling arose inside of her; she couldn't really define what it was - she somehow felt hurt after saying those words. Unexpectedly there was no reaction from Selena, so she kept talking: 'I'm sorry you had to see that! Luke didn't want to hurt you…and neither did I.' She said the last part a bit quieter. She may not have liked Selena but she would never deal ill with anybody.

Selena just quickly nodded which made Akari feel at least a little relieved.

The two girls stood there several seconds and as Selena requested again to be left alone – this time with a less annoyed intonation -, Akari headed back to the clinic. Remaining in front of the entrance there, she waited until the boat was leaving ten minutes later.

She paced up and down, wondering if she was really able to becalm Selena a bit or if her anger would boil over again once she stomached the whole situation. She didn't notice that Dale was approaching her meanwhile.

'Akari', he gasped, 'Irene just called me. Luke really retrieved his memory?'

As she was affirming his question a smile spread on her face - an honest smile. Luke was his old self again; she realized she still was as happy as before this awkward situation with the kiss happened. She decided to just forget about that and get back to normal; this way it will be easier for him, she thought. How could she get so distracted anyway? Her best friend needed her support now! He still would have to go a long way to recover his wounds after all.

When Akari and Dale entered Luke's sickroom, Jin was by his side.

'Son!' Dale carefully laid his arm around Luke. 'I'm so glad to hear the good news! How do you feel?'

'I'm fine, dad.' he said and then looked at Akari. She nodded in response and gave him an encouraging smile.

Jin looked at his clipboard. 'His values look good and we'll do another examination to check his memory', he explained. 'And then, well, I'd say you can go back home tomorrow! But take it slow, ok?' He smiled. 'I'll pass by once a week to check your progress. In case you're not feeling well at any time, please let me know.'

'Sure thing! Thank you, Jin!' Luke replied.

'You can take a little rest now, I'll be back shortly to start the examination.'

'Actually I have to leave now as well. I left Bo alone at the Carpentry and to be honest, he's better at copping trees than serving customers.' Dale smirked. 'But I'll come back after closing time, I promise!'

'No problem, pops! I wouldn't let this greenhorn alone either.' Luke giggled.

As Dale bid goodbye, Akari sat down on the chair next to Luke's bed. He wanted to start the conversation but she was faster: 'Listen, about the kiss…we should just forget about it. I can understand you were overwhelmed by your emotions. You finally retrieved your memory and that's what matters! I'm so happy to have my best friend back!' She smiled while softly squeezing his hand.

Thousands of thoughts crossed his mind – like the whole day already, but at that moment he was close to finally confess his feelings. His accident made him aware that life can be short and he should trade on every second. But from her reaction he reasoned that she obviously didn't want to go further than being friends. He also remembered the situation with Selena at Toucan Island and couldn't stand the thought of possibly loosing Akari like that. So he made up his mind, although it was more painful than he avowed himself.

'Y-you are right. I'm sorry to have surprised you like that, I somehow couldn't control my reaction.' He looked down at her hand which was still laying on his.

'Please stop worrying about that already! Hey, you're allowed to finally go back home tomorrow! I will visit you every day and bring some fresh, self-made food!' she declared.

'Oh my, you want me to wind up in here again, huh?' he teased. As they kept talking, he could feel the pain in his heart weaken a little. He was positive it was the right decision to establish their friendship again.

Akari let him know that Selena went home in the meantime but she decided not to mention the details of their conversation. Luke knew he needed to talk to Selena soon - about the kiss and most of all about what she had told him earlier today. He needed to find out if he forgot about it due to his amnesia or if Selena simply lied to him. Although he couldn't imagine she would fib about something significant like that.

As Jin came back in, Akari made her farewell to go back to her farm.

'Alright Luke, what we're going to do now is more like a "quiz". I'll ask you some questions about events in the past and you just answer them', Jin explained. 'I will also show you some exercises to train your brain – I know it sounds a little strange', he smiled, 'but it's important for your further progress and you should also continue this at home. Do you have any questions so far?'

'No, gotcha, doc. We can get started!' Luke replied.

The procedure took a bit more than thirty minutes and at the end of it, Jin was pleasantly surprised. 'Luke, this is amazing! Amnesia patients usually regain small parts of their memory first and to get these completely connected again takes at least several weeks. But it seems you just retrieved all your memories at once!'

'Err, that's good…isn't it?' Luke asked with a puzzled face.

'Yes, don't worry', Jin becalmed him. 'It's just a bit surprising, I've never experienced this before. It will make your recovery a lot easier, which is great!' A big smile spread on his face.

'Actually there's one thing I still cannot remember…'

'What's that?' Jin asked while his smile made way for a bewildered expression.

'Well, you know… there is a certain chance that somebody just lied to me about that…but I don't think so. I mean…I'm not sure. Um', Luke paused as his cheeks started to glow, 'To be honest I doubt if I should tell you about it at all. It's quite embarrassing.'

'First of all, I can assure you that everything you tell me stays inside this room and I will do my best to help you in any way possible. I'm sure there's nothing to be embarrassed about, but if you feel uncomfortable, you don't need to talk about it of course.'

Luke really didn't want to but somehow he had to get it off his chest. 'Ok!' he nodded and took a deep breath. 'I…I slept with Selena.'

**Thanks for reading!**


	7. Surrender

**A quick update**** ^^ Many thanks again to all of you for reading & reviewing! Please continue, it's much appreciated – as always :) I hope you'll enjoy!**

Chapter 7: Surrender

Jin stood besides Luke's bed rubbing his chin, obviously absorbed in thought. 'Hm, I should just talk to Selena if I were you. I'm sorry I cannot give a more helpful advice but your memory seems to be fully recovered and if you don't remember…such a thing…then odds are that she might have lied to you. To be quite honest, I never realized that you two could have had a romantic relationship. '

Luke dropped his gaze. 'Of course you are right. I'm sorry to have bothered you with something like that. There is not other way to find out than directly talking to her.'

'You don't need to apologize! It's absolutely comprehensible that this whole situation is confusing for you! But I'm sure you'll be able to straighten that out soon. Don't worry too much about it.' He gave him an encouraging smile. 'Hey, New Year's Eve is just four days away, I hope to see you at my party!'

'Really? You say I'm allowed to go to a party in my condition, doc?' Luke's face lightened up. Being the kind of hothead he was, he could really use some change after spending more than one week in hospital – Jin knew that.

'Well, I will be around all the time and you simply shouldn't overdo it - no alcohol and no staying up until 3a.m. Apart from that…why not?' A big grin spread on his face.

Luke smiled in response as Jin patted his shoulder before walking towards the corridor. At the doorway he turned around again: 'Oh, by the way: feel free to use the phone next to your bed anytime.' He winked at Luke and then went out.

He followed Jin's advice instantly - he didn't just want to bum around but rather get this over with. After dialling the number, he reached Sue at the other end of the phone: 'This is the Pineapple Inn, how may I help you?'

'Hi Sue, it's Luke. How are you?'

'Luke, what a pleasant surprise! We are fine, thanks! Selena already told us the good news, I'm so happy that you retrieved your memory!'

He had to swallow. He wondered if Selena mentioned any further details. 'Y-yeah, thanks.'

'I'm so sorry that Samson and I didn't visit you, we have been so busy. But we really thought about you every day!'

'Please don't worry about that! Glad to hear that everything goes well at Toucan Island. Um, I would need to talk to Selena, could you please get her?'

'Sure, honey! Just a minute, she's outside. I hope to talk to you again soon. Bye.'

'Thank you! Bye.' Several seconds of silence passed by before Selena picked up the receiver.

'Hello Luke?' She was talking so quiet that he almost couldn't hear her.

'Hi Selena. H-how are you?' He could feel he was getting a little nervous.

'I am fine…h-how about you?' She still didn't raise her voice.

'Good…so far.' He took a deep breath. 'Err, listen…I need to a-ask you something. Um…I-I need to know…I m-mean, about what you told me e-earlier today…and then the k-kiss. I-'

'Wait', she cut him off, 'I know what you're up to. But I didn't lie to you!' She sounded a bit hysterical now.

At that moment Luke held his breath.

'I guess you remember the Thanksgiving Festival last year?' She realized her voice started to squeak so she cleared her throat. 'My dad invited you, Dale and Bo over. While me and my mum kept serving food, you guys were busy drinking. Later that night you suggested that the two of us should go swimming in the sea as everyone else went to bed. After we plunged into the water you started to tickle and spin me around. Then you suddenly dragged me into your arms and kissed me!'

Luke's jaw instantly dropped – he was certainly able to recall that evening but not the nightly side trip to the sea.

'I didn't know what the hell came over me', Selena hissed at the other end of the phone. 'You were obviously drunk and I was so naive! When you didn't remember our kiss the next day it literally was a strike in my face!'

He didn't know what to say but he suddenly knew why he never drank so much alcohol again since then – he remembered the heavy hangover he faced the next morning. 'Oh my!' he yelled, clapping his hand over his mouth.

'So this story _does_ ring a bell, huh?'

Luke had to pause for a few seconds before he was able to talk again. 'B-but…it never went any further…than a k-kiss? Or did we…?'

'NO, damn it', she snorted. 'No, we didn't!'

So it really was a lie – a simple, sneaky lie! Luke has never been the kind of guy who would ever boil over with range but all of a sudden anger began to arise inside of him. 'Selena…how could you do this to me? I am well aware about your feelings and you know by now that I never had any intension to hurt you! But you just lied to me when I lost my memory! I was helpless and confused, what the heck got into you?'

She suddenly began to sob. 'You have no idea how it feels to be so close to what you've always wanted! Can't you understand the urge to throw your doubts overboard and just use any chance that you're given?'

Luke bit his lips – thinking of Akari he certainly _did_ know how it feels! But would he ever use her like that if he had the chance? Of course his answer was no. 'You don't need to tell _me_ how it feels. But this doesn't prove you or anyone else right to toy with people's emotions. Why did you never talk to me about this earlier?'

'I-I couldn't! I w-was afraid you wouldn't believe me.'

He had to admit he could understand her fear. 'Fair enough', he sighed. 'But lying about it just now doesn't help anybody. How can I ever trust you again?'

'Luke, please', she sobbed heavily.

'Yo, please calm down - maybe we should both calm down first. I think we're in a complete turmoil, it would be no good to keep talking like that.' He closed his eyes and took a deep breath one more time. 'Listen, you should take some rest and clear your mind, so will I. We shall talk again when we're ready for an objective conversation.'

'I-I'm sorry. Please believe me!' she said with her meanwhile tear-stained voice.

'All right. I'm going to hang up now, ok? So long, Selena.' He didn't wait for her response as he rang off. Although he knew his reaction was justified, he felt awful. He never had an argument before, besides the typical ones you have with your parents or friends as a kid.

He reconceived the whole situation between him and Selena and realized how much he must have hurt her in the past. He kissed her when he was drunk; he confessed to her he was in love with Akari – all without knowing how she felt about him. Although he felt a certain sympathy for her, he would never accept her behaviour. But still, he hoped the two of them could work this out somehow; at least to be able to deal normally again with each other.

He spent the rest of the afternoon staring outside the window until Dale came back after he was done with work.

The next day Bo picked Luke up from the clinic around noon. When they entered the Carpentry, Dale and Akari welcomed them with a big surprise lunch - broiled catfish, sautéed spinach, vegetable stir fry and chocolate banana for desert.

The four of them spent the rest of the day together and as they kept eating, talking and laughing, Luke felt so relieved to be back home – mentally and physically.

When the night finally closed in, Akari offered to wash the dishes but Dale declined with thanks.

'I will walk you home', Luke declared.

'No, it's okay, you should go to be-'

'Fiddlesticks', he cut her off. 'Come on, let's go.'

'Ok. I know I can't allure you from doing it anyway.' She smirked. 'Goodnight everyone, and thank you!'

'Goodnight', Bo yawned as Dale waved farewell.

After they arrived at Akari's farm, they were silently standing in front of her house for a few seconds.

'Luke, are you ok?'

'Huh?'

'You have been acting strange the whole day, I was just wondering if there's something wrong?'

'No, not at all', he replied. 'I'm just happy to be back home.'

They smiled at each other as he suddenly pulled her into an embrace.

'I'm also happy that you're back', she said wrapping her arms round his torso.

He kissed her hair when he suddenly whispered: 'I love you.'

**Thanks for reading!**


	8. The bottom line

**So ****this is Chapter 8 - there's something cooking ;)**

**Thanks again to all of you for reading & reviewing****, much appreciated! I hope you'll enjoy this one, too! :)**

Chapter 8: The bottom line

'What did you say?' Akari giggled as Luke and her were still in tight embrace. 'You know, I cannot understand you if you mumble something into my hair.'

He took a deep breath. 'Nothin'. He smiled and at that moment he felt relieved. He had confessed to her – more or less. Although she couldn't hear what he just said, it took a load off his mind. He wished her a good night and started to whistle a random melody on his way home.

The next day Akari headed to the Carpentry around noon. As promised, she was bringing Luke some self-made food – even though she _knew_ he would take the piss out of it. But she also knew he would always eat up, her cooking skills were not that bad actually.

Dale welcomed her as she entered but Luke was not there.

'He's at the basement', Dale explained. 'You know, he's only been home for one day but he's already driving me crazy', he whispered. 'Since he's not allowed to chop trees again yet, he keeps looking for other activities. He's bugging Bo and me every second because he's so bored. His newest-'

'Shit', a voice screamed.

'See, that's what I mean.' Dale rolled his eyes.

Akari chuckled and went down to the basement to check on Luke. She found him in front of a big wooden dresser, his shirt covered with dark red paint.

'What exactly are you doing?' she asked with an astonished face.

'Yo Akari', he yelled. 'Well, I'm painting some of our old furniture. We don't need them anymore, I thought I could spice those pieces up a bit. Maybe we can even resell them if people like it. And this…', he pointed at his chest, 'I know it looks like an accident but actually it was an artistical approach to posh up my clothing.' He laughed and carefully pulled the paint-soaked shirt over his head.

There it was again, he unveiled his well-formed torso. Different from the day they had been on Toucan Island, his rips were covered with blue and red bruises. Akari had to frown at this view but to the tick she started to blush as well.

'I already did the one over there', he declared and pointed at a nightstand in the corner which was spotted with vivid colors. Light shades randomly fading into dark, there seemed to be no concept behind but it looked very stylish and unique.

'Wow, this looks cool', Akari exclaimed. 'You should really try to sell it!'

'You think? Hm, maybe I will give it a try at the next flea market.'

Akari kept staring at the floor rather than looking at Luke; he was adjusting his waistband which sat on top of his distinctive lions. Boy, if those jeans would just drop one little millimeter… When he came one step closer, she automatically looked up and caught a glimpse at his belly, along his chest up to his arms - she almost had to blink.

'By the way, what actually brings you here?' he asked.

She suddenly got weak in the knees. 'I-I just wanted to b-bring you some food.' She lifted up the lunch box at his eye level.

'Well, thank you!' he cheered and inhaled the delicious scent of spinach risotto. As his eyes met hers, she instantly gazed back at the floor. 'Akari, you look a bit strange. Are you not feeling well?'

'I-I…it just came into my head, I mean…I-I still have some work do to, I better leave now. I'll see you tomorrow!'

She ran up the stairs so quickly, he couldn't say anything in response.

As she walked down the path to her farm she felt beads of sweat dripping down her forehead. Her cheeks were glowing and she looked down to her shaking hands. Was she getting sick? Although it was freezing outside, she covered her face with cold water when she arrived at the well on her farmland.

'Akari', a cheerful voice yelled.

She turned her dripping wet face around and saw Renee coming closer. 'Hi! I thought I just pop in on my way to town.' A big smile spread on her face.

'Ah, nice to see you', Akari gasped. She was always happy to have a visitor, especially Renee who had become a close friend meanwhile.

'Oh my, is there something wrong?' she was worriedly looking at Akari's glowing red face.

'I feel a bit strange. Maybe I'm coming down with a cold or something. But it's ok.'

'Well, I don't like to the look of it! Come on, let's go inside, you should take some rest.'

Akari sighed and gave in – she knew how stubborn her friend could be but that's only because she cared so much.

Renee directed her to the couch and put her hand onto Akari's forehead. 'You're not feverish, do you have a headache or something?'

'No. Actually I don't really feel sick but I'm shaking and my stomach is kinda fluttering.'

'Maybe you're overworked', Renee guessed.

'Nah, winter season is not really busy, I just came back from a visit at the Carpentry. Ha, you know what? Luke's latest hobby is painting old furniture. He's actually quite good at it but earlier today he "painted" his clothes instead - his shirt was so soaked he had to take it off right away. He's so bloody clumsy sometimes!'

'I see…'

'What with that sudden smirk on your face?'

'I think I know where your "symptoms" come from.'

'Whaddya mean?' Akari had no idea what Renee was driving at.

'It's so funny, you and Luke turned out to be good matchmakers but now it seems I have to take that role. Sweetie, you seem to be in love with Luke!'

'WHAT?' You could clearly hear a mixture of astonishment and insurrection in Akari's voice. 'H-How…no…certainly not! Hey, I know how love feels, I've already been through heartache and everything. Luke is my best friend and nothing more and besides, even if I would be in love with him, he doesn't feel the same way about me but I don't feel this way about him anyway, I like him and he likes me and we are best friends.' Great speech!

'Well', Renee chuckled, 'first of all, you're babbling - that's another sign by the way. And second, do you know yet how _real_ love feels?'

'Alright…before you claim again that I'm babbling, let me just say: this-is-nuts! End of story.'

'However', Renee smirked. 'I have to go now. But maybe you should give it some consideration, just sayin'. Well then, "get well soon" – either way.' She winked at Akari.

'Thank you, Nurse Renee', she sassed. 'See ya!'

Akari would just spend the rest of the day on the couch, taking a rest – so she thought. Although she hated to admit it, she couldn't get this idea out of her head. Luke and her, being a couple. 'What a load of rubbish', she thought.

The next morning her day started as usual – feeding her animals, clearing of weeds, watering the crops. Afterwards she headed to town and saw Julius and Candace held hands while running past her. They ambled a few meters ahead, not noticing the farmer behind their back. As they suddenly stopped to kiss each other, Akari was literally struck by lighting. Her mind instantly recalled how Luke had kissed her at the clinic. When the couple continued their way, she wasn't able to move anymore. She heavily shook her head to get rid of this picture but she failed. 'What the heck…get a grip Akari, will ya?' she reproached herself. As she finally walked on, she still wasn't clear-headed – but Yolanda was waiting for the milk delivery so she had to keep going.

After she arrived back at her farm she decided to take a bath and just relax. As she was examining the wardrobe for fresh clothes, her mint-green bikini fell into her hands. At that second, another lightning struck her. She pictured Luke with his swim trunks and naked torso – his strong arms which could always easily lift her into the air; his broad chest where she laid her head onto whenever they embraced; his belly which showed only slight marks of six-pack.

'Enough already', she screamed and slammed the door of the wardrobe. She paced up and down, tearing her hair. What's all this about? She collapsed into bed, staring at the ceiling while thousands of thoughts crossed her mind like a rollercoaster. She tried to gather herself but whenever she pictured Luke she started to shake. After uncountable attempts to think straight again, tears suddenly filled her eyes. She just sat there several minutes before turning over to the nightstand to pick up the phone.

Seconds later she reached Renee who could only hear her sobbing. 'W-who's there?'

'It's m-me, Akari.'

'Oh dear, what's wrong? What happened?'

'I-I think you were r-right', she wept freely, 'I am in love with Luke.'

**Thanks for reading!**


	9. To have and to hold

**Sorry the update took**** a bit longer but here's chapter 9. Thanks again for reading & reviewing, please continue :) I hope you'll enjoy!**

Chapter 9: To have and to hold

'I'll come over right away!' Renee yelled before she hung up.

Akari stood up from the bed and went to the bathroom. When she checked the mirror she saw her rumpled hair and trails of mascara on her cheeks. 'Geez', she gasped and started to fix the mess.

Ten minutes later Renee knocked at the door. 'It's me!' When she entered, she instantly gave Akari a hug. She took her both hands, directed her to the couch and they both sat down.

'Oh dear', Renee sighed as she realized her friend had tears in her eyes again. 'Sssh, please calm down. Hey', she lifted Akari's chin, 'why are you crying anyway? It's great to be in love', she cheered and gave her an encouraging smile.

'How can this be great? Just within a few hours I became an emotional wreck! I've never experienced this before, I don't know why it hit me so suddenly!'

'Well, I guess Luke's accident and his amnesia probably made you aware how much you care about him.'

Akari paused for a moment and thought about the last two weeks. 'I think you're right. I was so scared to loose him and when he didn't remember me it almost broke my heart. And when he suddenly kissed me-'

'He KISSED you?', Renee yelled.

'Y-yeah.' Akari blushed. 'Right after he regained his memory.'

'Well, that alters the case! This is great!'

'Don't get too excited, it was an accident. He apologized right away, he was basically just overwhelmed and confused, period. The point is: Luke doesn't feel the same way about me. It's useless!'

'How do you know? I don't think it was just an accident. It's obvious that he likes you!'

'Yeah, as a friend.' she sighed.

'No way, I'm sure there's more to it. And we'll find out.' Renee smirked.

'What do you mean? How?'

'You go to Jin's party with him, right?'

Akari clapped her hand over her mouth. She completely forgot about the party, it was just two days ahead. 'Y-yes…oh my god, what shall I do now? It's too late to decline! How should I act towards him, what should I wear, what-'

'Akari, don't panic! And don't you dare to think about declining that date again! Just try to be cool.' Well duh, easier said than done, Akari thought. 'A party is the perfect oppourtunity to get closer to him', Renee declared. She had no idea Luke had the same intention earlier. 'First of all, you have to look gorgeous, we'll go shopping tomorrow right away! And then, you can just leave the rest to me!' She grinned.

A shy smile spread on Akari's face. 'You really are confident about that, huh?' Renee nodded in response. 'But I could loose my best friend if this goes wrong.'

'I would never do anything to risk your friendship with Luke. If I should find out that the whole thing would lead nowhere, we'll just leave it. Trust me, ok?' She winked at Akari.

'Of course I trust you. But you'll understand I'm _a bit_ nervous.' She darted a questioning look at Renee who just smiled back at her.

_December 31__st__, 6:20p.m._

Akari paced up and down, Luke would pick her up in ten minutes. She was afraid not to be ready in time so she had already prepared the food at midday and has been completely dressed up since thirty minutes. She checked herself on the mirror again – approximately for the fiftieth time.

She wore a burgundy strapless dress which was slightly ruffled along the décolleté neckline. The hem ended shortly above her ankles and a black silk belt accentuated her slender waist. The sling pumps and hairband matched the color of her belt and her subtle make-up underlined her amber eyes perfectly. She had converted a black silk-ribbon into a neckband which gave her outfit the finishing touch – she looked like a million bucks.

She shuddered as she suddenly heard a knock at the entrance; the last minutes just seemed like hours to her. She took a deep breath and opened the door. Luke wore a black tux with a white shirt, no bow-tie, no neck-tie; the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. Akari was annoyed at first when Jin had asked for formal clothing in his invitation but this feeling vanished into thin air. Luke's debonair appearance made her legs feel like jelly.

'Akari', he looked up and down at her, 'you…you look smashing!'

While she was striving for words her cheeks started to glow heavily. She didn't notice Luke's face turned red, too.

'T-thank you. Y-you also look g-great', she mumbled. What did Renee say earlier, she should try to be cool? No way!

'You think? I feel a bit weird.' He tugged his jacket. 'I feel so naked without my bandana', he chuckled.

Akari let out a nervous laugh in return; she thought he looked adorable with his out-of-bed hairstyle. The two of them just stood there staring at each other as Luke finally broke the silence. 'Um…shall we get going?'

'Err…s-sure! Um, h-here, can you take the c-cooling box, please? I-I will take the b-basket.'

'Sure thing.'

When they arrived at Jin's house, they were not the first guests: Anissa, Renee and Toby had already been there. Everybody helped to get the buffet ready and as Kathy and Owen joined, the beverages were provided for, too.

'Can we get started now? I'm staaarving!' Luke moaned.

'Oh boy', Jin sighed. 'Perry and Gill should be here any minute, you think you still can hold on till then?' At that second the doorbell rang.

'Right on cue', Luke yelled and grabbed a plate. Akari was just shaking her head and couldn't help but laughing like everyone else did.

Time was just flying and they all had a great time – Akari was the only one who hardly ate anything. She kept drinking and talking with the girls instead, trying to ease her tension somehow. Renee was always there to comfort her; she only left Akari's side whenever Luke got across but that hardly happened as Owen and Toby kept him busy.

'Hey Renee', Akari tapped her shoulder, 'you didn't tell Toby about it, did you?'

'No, but meanwhile I wish I had, he could easily find out if-'

'No, please don't! It's not that I don't trust Toby but I don't want to get more people involved. I'm nervous enough!' She blushed.

'I understand. But this is kind of frustrating, Luke just keeps hanging with the guys. Why don't you go over there and pull him out?'

'What, just like that? No way, Toby and Owen would instantly smell a rat! Besides, what kind of excuse should I use to get him away?'

Renee sighed. 'Well, we're getting closer to midnight. We need to make _some_ progress here.'

'We shouldn't force anything, it would never work out like that.' Akari gazed at the floor.

'Maybe you're right. But hey, cheer up sweetie! The party's not over yet, the fireworks at the beach will be a perfectly romantic surrounding, anything can still happen', she smirked, winking at Akari.

Suddenly Jin raised his glass. 'Guys, it's just ten minutes till midnight, let's go out and watch the fireworks!' He grabbed a big bottle of champagne as everyone was putting on their coats.

When they arrived at the beach all other Islanders had gathered already and Mayor Hamilton started his annual speech: 'Welcome everyone! I hope you had a great time tonight with your family and friends! We have every reason to be thankful, the last year has just been a great one for Waffle Island! Our exports have increased again and we gained our new friend Akari whose farm is expanding continually. We can't wait to see your further progress, Akari, and thanks to every single one of you for your hard work! Let's now look forward to the New Year and celebrate it together. Thanks for coming and enjoy!'

As soon as he was finished, the people were counting down the last ten seconds before the fireworks started to display. Everyone clasped into each other's arms and couples started kissing. Meanwhile Akari was looking for Luke who suddenly disappeared from the scenario. She spotted him walking towards the end of the docks and instantly followed his path.

He just stared at the ocean as she was standing a few meters behind him before she broke the silence. 'Luke, are you alright?'

'Yeah, I'm just thinking about my old man who's at Toucan Island with Bo and Selena's family. New Year's eve has always been tough for him since my mum passed away.'

Akari approached him and took his hand. 'It must be tough for you as well.'

'It is. But I'm glad I still have my dad and Bo…and you', he sighed as he looked her straight in the eye.

'I'm always there for you!' She suddenly felt butterflies filling her stomach but at the same time she also realized this strange ease of mind. When he gently smiled at her and squeezed her hand, she gathered all of her courage and raised herself on tiptoes to kiss him.

**Thanks for reading!**


	10. Fools

**Hi dear readers! I can't believe it took me ****SO long to update! -.- Sorry for that, I somehow lost track and couldn't go on. But I'll try to update more frequently from now on. Gotta say there's some lovey-dovey stuff ahead, I thought it's about time ^^ More drama to come soon. I hope you'll still enjoy this story after such a long time – if so, please review ;) Thank you!**

**Chapter 10:****Fools**

Akari turned beet-red as she was moving away her face from Luke's.

'Well…u-um, t-that's what I c-call a n-nice New Year's k-kiss!' He nervously scratched the back of his head.

'N-not really…I-I mean…'

'Ak-'

'It's more like a confession', she suddenly yelled and instantly gazed down at her feet without noticing Luke's puzzled face. 'Look…I…I'm really…l-lousy at…at expressing my…f-feelings…a-and-'

Before she knew it, he suddenly pulled her up closely and leaned in for another kiss. She was surprised at first but his soft, warm lips let the butterflies in her stomach flutter even more. She wrapped her arms around his neck and returned his passion as he thrust his tongue in her mouth. She felt the heat arising inside of her and started to hold on tighter but he suddenly flinched.

'Oh Luke, I'm so sorry, I forgot your bruises! Did I hurt you badly?'

'No no, I'm fine', he softly stroked her cheek and started to smirk.

'What? What's the matter?' she asked. She could feel her skin burn underneath the touch of his fingers.

'Ah, you know', he sighed, 'you have _no_ idea how many times I tried to tell you how I feel about you.' His grin suddenly became bigger. 'And then you…you just come along and kiss me like that!'

Luke began to laugh and Akari joined in before she carefully laid her head onto his chest and inhaled a dose of the cold winter air. 'I'm so sorry that I troubled you like that. I should have realized much earlier, it's-'

He abruptly put his arms around her waist and kissed her hair. 'I guess we both are fools', he chuckled.

'I guess you are right'. She looked up into his golden eyes and smiled before pressing her lips against his one more time.

'Oh, there you-', Renee suddenly came along but instantly stopped when she saw Akari in Luke's arms. 'Oh…err…I guess I'm…interrupting something here', she smirked.

'Err, kind of', Akari smiled brightly as Luke turned his flabbergasted face towards Renee.

'Um…the others were wondering where you guys went. We're going back to Jin's house, you wanna join or…?'

'Uh…I guess I'll go back home. I-I should take a rest, Jin advised me to go to bed early.' Luke cleared his throat. 'Akari, what about you?'

'Um', she faked a yawn, 'well, I'm pretty tired.'

'I will walk you home then', he exclaimed.

'I see…', Renee smirked. 'Well then, um…I will let the others know you guys are off. Talkin' to you tomorrow, Akari', she winked. 'Good night!'

'You're such a bad liar', Akari teased once Renee was out of earshot.

'Look who's talking! And besides, Jin really advised me not to stay up too late', Luke explained. They both giggled and took each other's hand before heading off.

Until they arrived in front of Akari's house they just kept staring at each other like two infatuated teenagers. A certain tension was in the air; a strange mixture of attraction and anxiety.

'So, um…you wanna….come in?' The young farmer blushed heavily as she put her hand on the doorknob.

'Err', Luke cleared his throat. Nervousness was written all over his face but he tried to stay cool. 'Yeah…s-sure.'

The second he walked in and closed the door behind him, he felt even tenser. What if this was wrong? He really loved this girl; shouldn't he be a gentleman and just kiss her goodnight and leave instead?

'Luke, what's wrong?' Akari suddenly interrupted his self-doubts.

'Oh um…it's…nothing', he replied and crossed both arms in front of his chest as he looked around. He had been in this house many times before but this time it certainly was different.

She raised her brows and gave him a meek smile. 'You are nervous, aren't you?'

That hit home.

'I-I…w-well…n-no…why d-do you t-think…n-no', he stammered, not able to make up a proper sentence.

Akari softly loosened the grip of this folded arms and put her own around his neck, rubbing her cheek against his. 'You are the cutest person on earth', she whispered.

'I just wanna do this properly', he sighed.

She slowly backed away from him; her hands rested on his shoulders as she looked straight into his eyes. 'Have you…I mean, are you…experienced, or…'

'You mean if I'm a virgin?' he asked calmly.

'E-err…yeah.' She suddenly felt like a jerk.

'Well...' He bit his lower lip and softly stroked her check before he said: 'I'm not.'

'Oh.' Akari didn't really know if she should be happy about that or not. She thought it would be romantic if she was his first girl but she had to admit it wasn't her first time either. 'Well, I, um…me neither.'

'Okay…' Now it was Luke who didn't know what to make of this. But it did take a little pressure off him. 'A-and when…I mean…w-who…'

She started to smile. 'More than two years ago. Nick was my first real boyfriend and…well, we thought we loved each other enough but we were simply too young. We broke up shortly afterwards - amicably.'

'Hm', he nodded.

Akari kept staring at him but all she got in response was silence.

'Um, Luke?'

'Yeah?'

'What about you?' she asked with a smirk.

'Oh, um…I met Olivia during my last year in high school - I studied abroad, you know. We went out a couple of times and…well, eventually we ended up in bed.' He suddenly blushed heavily.

'That's it?'

'That's it.'

'Well, did you still date her afterwards or…?'

'Um…no.'

'Why not?'

'Well', he sighed, 'to be honest, we were young and driven by hormones, okay? We didn't have real feelings for each other.' He crossed his arms again, staring at the floor in embarrassment.

'Oh Lu-'

'But I have changed, Akari, I swear! I would never do something like this to you! You know I really…love you.' He swallowed.

'Of course I know!' She stroked the bangs out of his face and smiled. 'I love you, too. More than you know. More than _I_ ever knew.' She wrapped her arms around his neck once more and whispered right into his ear: 'I want you to hold me.'

He grabbed her waist, pulled her up closely and inhaled the scent of her soft skin. 'I was hoping you would say that.'

He started to kiss her neck all the way down to her collar bone before he went back up to reach her lips. Without stopping his rough, passionate kiss, he picked her off the floor and carried her to the bed.

'Akari?'

'Yes', she panted.

'I'm still kinda nervous', he admitted.

'Me too.'

He smiled. 'I guess we both are fools.'

'You already said that', she chuckled before she reached out her hands and softly pulled him on top of her.

As they got lost in another fervent kiss, followed by endless passion and loving, they eventually realized they had nothing to be nervous about.

**Thanks for reading! ****K****itschy, I know ^^ I might need some more time to update but I'll try my best to keep up.**


	11. Gone

**Hiya! So here's ****a new chapter - it's quite short but I hope you'll still enjoy! Thanks for reading and please don't forget to review :)**

**Chapter 11: ****Gone**

A wink…blurriness… another wink. Akari yawned and turned around; the other side of the bed was empty.

'Luke?' she whispered half asleep and her hand groped its way to light the bedside lamp. After she sat up and rubbed her eyes, she realized there was a note on the nightstand. She instantly picked it up and began to read: _Good morning sleepyhead! :-P_

'Sleepyhead?' she moaned and looked at the alarm clock. 'What's the big idea, smartass? It's only 5:45 a.m.! Gosh!' She ruffled her hair and continued to read:

_Sorry I left like that, I wanna prepare a __BIG New Year's breakfast before dad and Bo arrive home. Please come over and join us, everything will be ready at 9 a.m., sharp! Don't be late! :-)_

_XOXO,  
__Luke_

_P.S.: I can't wait to see your face again. I will never forget last night 3_

She joyfully sighed.

_P.P.S.: By the way__, I went through your drawers and took along one of your sexy panties as a souvenir :-P_

'Argh, LUKE', she yelled before she realized there was another line at the very bottom of the note.

_P.P.P__.S.: Just kiddin'! :-P_

'Oh, you dumbass', she laughed as she went to the bathroom and quickly freshened up to start her daily tasks. Once it began to dawn, Akari's mood lifted as well; there wasn't a single cloud in the sky and you could tell it was going to be a bright day.

She hurried up this morning so she was able to finish her duties earlier than usual. _Good, 7:30. Now I can go and help Luke before he sets Dale's kitchen on fire._

No sooner said than done! When she opened the front door of the Carpentry she stepped in with a loud scream: 'Surprise! Now, who do you call a sleepy-'

As she stood in the doorway and looked around, she could only see kitchenware and various groceries scattered all over the floor – no sign of the young carpenter at all.

'Luke?' she called while she slowly entered. 'Luke, what's with this mess, where are y-'

She suddenly clapped her hands over her mouth as she found him lying on the floor beneath the kitchen counter.

'Oh my God', she yelled and kneeled down next him, carefully laying his head onto her thighs. 'Luke? What is it? Luke! Come on, wake up! Please!' She softly stroked his cheeks and tried to make out any vital signs. 'Luke, please…', a tear ran over her face as she gently laid his head down to the floor again to be able to reach for the phone.

Beep.

'Jin', she whispered.

Beep.

'Please pick up the phone!'

Beep.

'Please!'

Beep.

'JIN', she now yelled. 'Come on!'

Beep.

She started to shiver.

Klick.

'Yeah?' a sleepy voice asked. 'Who's there?'

'Jin! It's me, Akari!'

'Whoa, keep it down', the young doctor complained. 'What's with the yelling?'

'Jin, you have to come to the Carpentry, now! I found Luke lying on the floor, he's unconscious. Please, you have to hurry up!'

That certainly woke him up. 'What? He's unconscious? E-err, okay…okay. I'll be there any minute. C-could you observe any vital signs? Is he breathing?'

'His breath is weak but I could feel his pulse. Please hurry up, I don't know what to do', she cried.

'Don't panic, everything will be alright, I'm coming over right now! Position him in the lateral recumbent position if you can. I'll be right there!' And with that he hung up.

Akari tried her best to calm herself and follow Jin's advice until he entered the Carpentry ten minutes later - it seemed like hours to her.

'Oh Jin', she sobbed, 'thank goodness you're here.'

'Everything's alright', he petted her shoulder before kneeling down next to Luke. 'You did well, Akari. Don't worry, I'll do my best to help him', he explained and opened his emergency tool kit.

After he had examined Luke's heart and lungs he let out a sigh of relief.

'What is it?' Akari asked, still shivering.

'His breathing and heart beat is normal, he doesn't seem to be comatose.' He put down the stethoscope as Irene and Perry suddenly stormed into the Carpentry.

'Jin, we're here, let's get him to the clinic.'

'Alright Perry, please help me putting Luke onto the stretcher. Irene, can you please take my equipment?'

'Gotcha.' The resolute old lady grabbed the emergency kit and put her arm around Akari's shoulder. 'Come here, sweetie. You don't have to worry, Luke is in good hands, we are well prepared.'

The young farmer just nodded in response.

'Come on, dear, let's go', Irene requested but Akari backed off.

'Um, wait a second please…I-I need to leave a note for Dale and Bo.'

After doing so, she spent the next hour in the clinic's waiting room. She tried to sit down several times but instantly stood up again; the uncertainty just freaked her out. Suddenly she sifted through her pocket and pulled out the note which Luke had left her this morning. She tightly pressed it against her chest and sighed. _Please be alright._

The door of the exam room finally flung open a few moments later; Jin instantly approached her with some good news.

'Well, he's awake now and his vital signs look good.'

'Really?' Akari's relief was so great, she almost collapsed. 'Oh, I'm so glad! I'm so glad!'

'Yeah, but…', Jin bit his lower lip.

'But?'

'His intracranial injury might be heavier than we thought.'

'What do you mean?' She started to shiver yet again, afraid of what could be coming next.

'Akari, I hate to say that but…his amnesia is back.'

'What? No…how…how can this be?' This time she couldn't help but falling down on her knees; Jin instantly pulled her back up and guided her to the next chair.

'Please calm down, Akari. It doesn't mean that he will never regain his memory. We just need to give him some time. We have to be very careful and patient now.'

None of his words could becalm the young farmer in any way, she was utterly terrified. She remembered the pain she felt when Luke had the accident. The surprised look on his face when he saw her; his questioning eyes, asking for her name; she couldn't stand the thought of loosing him like that again.

'Akari? Akari?' Jin raised his voice but she seemed to be in a daze. Then he suddenly grabbed her shoulders and looked straight into her eyes. 'Please, you have to listen to me! Luke needs you now! Get a grip! He will be back to normal someday but we cannot do this without your help! Akari…please!'

'You are right', she whispered as if she just awoke from a daydream. She looked at Luke's note again which she kept holding in her hand all the time. 'He needs me now, I can't be weak.' She wiped the tears off her cheeks and took a deep breath. 'Jin, please let me know what I can do to help him. I'll do anything!'

'That's great', he softly squeezed her hand and smiled. 'Thank you, Akari! I promise, we'll-'

'NO!'

'Was that Luke?' Akari jumped off the chair as Jin stormed back into the exam room.

'What are you doing? Leave me alone! Who are you?' The young carpenter yelled while Perry and Irene tried to hold down his hands and feet.

'What's wrong, what happened?' Jin asked as he opened a drawer and started to fill a syringe.

'I don't know', Irene answered while Luke kept kicking, 'he suddenly looked like he was struck by lightning and then he started to yell like that. I can't explain it.'

'Alright. Perry, I need you to push down his arm so I can give him the sedative injection. Okay, that's good, try to hold it like that.' Jin moaned. 'Okay…okay, got it.'

The injection took immediate effect and Luke slowly fell asleep; nobody realized that Akari silently sneaked a peek inside the room. For fear of confusing Luke too much, she didn't dare to enter at all. She slowly backed off again and leaned her back against the wall. _What am I to do now, Luke? I can see you, I can touch you but you are gone. _She looked at Luke's note yet again. _I will give you all the time in the world if you just come back to me. Please!_

**Thanks for reading!**


	12. Only Hope

**Hi there! Sorry for my lousy updating, I'm quite busy at the moment but I'll try to keep up. I hope you still enjoy and please keep reviewing**** :)**

**Chapter 12:**** Only Hope**

'Akari, are you home?'

'Yeah, come in!'

When Renee opened the front door, she found the young farmer kneeling on the ground, scrubbing the floor.

'Err...what are you doing? You just cleaned your house yesterday...and the day before. And- well, you clean your house every freakin' day!'

'Oh, just look around', Akari groaned as she wiped her forehead with her free hand, 'this place is a mess.'

'I don't see one single dust grain! You gotta stop that, seriously.'

'I don't wanna live in a pigsty, you know.'

'Come on, you know what I'm talking about! You use the daily cleaning as compensation because you miss Luke.'

'No, I'm not.' Akari swallowed.

'Listen sweetie', Renee kneeled down next to her friend, 'I know it's hard for you at the moment but please don't waste your energy like _this_. Luke needs you, please come to the clinic with me.'

Akari dashed the rag to the floor. 'I've visited him every day over the last six weeks. He doesn't recognize me, he doesn't recognize you, he doesn't recognize anyone. Not even Dale! What if he'll never be the same again? I can't stand even the thought of that', she sighed.

'He needs time, Akari. A lot of time. We all have to be patient with him. Imagine how Dale and Bo must feel.'

'I know', Akari started to sob and buried her face into her hands. 'I'm such an egoist! I should be strong and support Luke and his family but I just wallow in self-pity.'

'Oh', Renee gasped and hugged Akari. 'I'm sorry, dear! I really didn't mean accuse you! You're not egoistic at all, you're trying to bear with this tough situation somehow and I just come here and act like a bull in a china shop. I'm sorry! Just tell me how I can help you, I'll do anything.'

'There's no reason to apologize, you're always here when I need you', Akari said and squeezed her friend. 'And you know what, you are right! Let's go to the clinic.'

* * *

Jin sighed loudly as he came out of Luke's sickroom.

'What's the matter?', Irene asked. 'Still no progress, huh?'

He shook his head. 'I mean, we should be glad that his values are good but it's a real pity there's no progress at all. He doesn't remember anything', he said and started to rub his temples. 'I just wish I knew how this could have happened. The bump we found on his head is a clear indicator that he had hurt himself, but how? Of course he can't tell me at the moment. Oh, why is amnesia so complicated?'

'I know it's frustrating for you and everyone else but don't push yourself too hard. We have to be patient. Listen, why don't you get some rest now? Anissa is here, she's waiting for you upstairs', Irene smiled. 'I'll take it from here.'

'Thank you', Jin smiled but before he could approach the staircase, Akari and Renee entered the clinic.

'Good afternoon, everyone', Renee yelled while Akari hardly managed to slap on a smile.

'Hello you two. Are you alright?'

'Yes, thanks Jin. We are here to visit Luke. Can we go in or-'

'Yeah, feel free. He's up and I'm sure he's happy about getting some company.'

'Um', Renee took a step towards the young doctor, 'any progress?', she whispered.

Jin bit his lip and lightly shook his head. 'Um, Renee, would you mind to go ahead while I have a word with Akari?'

'Err, sure thing. I'll wait for you inside, dear.'

Akari silently nodded as Jin approached her: 'I'm glad you're here, I was afraid you wouldn't be coming today.'

'Well, I…um…'

'I know it's very hard for you, Akari. I'm sorry Luke's not making any progress so far, but don't give up! At least I've got some promising news for you: a former fellow student of mine will be coming here today. He's still quite young but amnesia was his subject in university, I'm sure he'll be able to help us.'

'That's great', Akari finally managed to put on a light smile.

'Yeah, isn't it? I'm pretty positive about this, Akari. We'll surely find a way to bring Luke back.'

'Thanks, Jin. Thanks so much for everything.'

'Well, that's my job', he smiled. 'Why don't you go in now? I'm sure Luke will be happy to see you.'

'Yeah, maybe. I guess we became something like friends by now', she said and tried to look happy but nobody could fail to hear the sarcastic undertone.

'Well, um…that's, that's…good.'

'I guess so. Well, see you later.'

'S-see you', Jin stammered and was shocked by the indifference in Akari's voice.

'Shouldn't you have told her that Selena was here this morning?', Irene whispered.

'I wanted to but I'm afraid it would upset her.'

'But she'll eventually find out. Selena is staying at the Inn for a few days and Luke might tell her that she was here.'

'Yeah', Jin sighed.

'But why don't you go upstairs and take some rest first, you hardly got any sleep these days. You can also talk to Akari tomorrow.'

'Okay.' Jin took a deep breath. 'I just hope she didn't loose all her hope yet.'

* * *

Later that day Akari had her regular evening phone talk with Kathy. The blonde bartender was able to distract her friend from her sadness a bit by updating her about the latest gossip in town.

'I also saw Jin and Anissa this morning at Maple Lake. Gosh, their lovey-dovey behavior really sickens me.'

'Kathy…'

'Alright, alright! I admit they are still a cute couple. I'm sure he'll propose to her soon, it's about time anyway. But tell me about your day now, how was your visit at the clinic?'

'Same old, I'd say', Akari shrugged. 'We talked, looked at some pictures, tried to refresh Luke's memory but failed. Period.'

'Hey, what's all this sarcasm good for? Stop that', Kathy urged.

'I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't talk like that but who knows where this leads to. I'm trying to be strong but it's hard to see someone you love in this condition, especially when you have no clue if and when he will ever be his old self again.'

'Never give up hope, sweetie!'

'Yeah, I know, you are right. Actually Jin told me that a young doctor from abroad will come today, he must have arrived by now. He's specializing in amnesia, Jin is convinced this guy can help Luke.'

'Hey, that's great! A young doctor, huh? I wonder if he's cute…'

'Wait, didn't you start to go out with Owen recently?'

'So? A woman should always check out her options.'

'Oh, come on! You kept talking about Owen for weeks and you freaked when he finally asked you out. I know you're crazy about him', Akari smirked.

'Oh, alright! But promise me you won't tell him, I don't want him to pride himself on that.'

~ Knock-knock ~

'Oh, um, there's someone at the door, can I call you back?'

'Yeah, sure. But don't te-'

'I won't tell Owen, I promise', Akari smiled. 'Talk to you soon and thanks for your call. Bye.' She hung up and went to the front door to welcome the late visitor who was one of her friends, so she thought. But when she opened up, her jaw literally hit the ground.

'Um…h-hi Akari! It's been a long time, huh? But I'm so glad to see you, you look great!'

The young farmer was completely baffled, it took her several seconds before she was able to speak.

'Nick?'

**Thanks for reading!**


	13. Just for once

**Hi there! New chapter is finally up, feel free to leave reviews if you like, feedback is always appreciated. Thanks & I hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 13: Just for once**

'N-Nick, what….how…u-um,' Akari stammered. The sight of her ex-boyfriend caught her on the hop.

'Speechless, huh,' he smiled. 'I know you must be surprised to see me, I'm sorry for that sudden visit. I hope I'm not bothering you? '

'Well, um…no…I…um…'

Nick started to laugh. 'I promise I can explain everything but, um…may I come in first? It's a bit cold out,' he said rubbing his upper arms.

'Um, sure,' she said and stepped back let him enter her house.

'Hey, nice place,' he exclaimed. 'Do you own this farm?'

Akari took a deep breath and tried to form a complete sentence without stammering again. 'Well, to be honest I'm still paying off some debts but yes, someday soon this will legally be my property,' she explained and hoped he wouldn't recognize how tense she still was.

'That's really impressive. And how's business, can you live well off your harvest?'

'Yeah, very well actually.'

'Wow, I take my hat off to you,' he smiled.

'Um, thanks.' Akari was admittedly flattered by those words.

'Well, if we wouldn't have split up I would've married well, huh?'

'Err…w-well…u-u-um…,' Akari stammered once more and turned beet-red which made Nick burst into laughter.

'C'mon, I'm just teasing,' he said. 'But seriously, we should have caught up much earlier. It's a great pity we lost contact.'

Nick's casual attitude finally eased Akari's inner tension and she managed to give him a soft smile. She started to feel the same conversance as when the two of them became friends back in High School before they started dating.

'It is,' she agreed. 'So, why don't you tell me about you then, how have you been over the last years?' she asked and offered him a seat at her dining table. 'Can I offer you something to drink by the way?'

'I'm good, thanks. Um…well, first of all,' he began as he sat down, 'I'm studying medicine now, that's the reason why I came here. I guess that's what you wanna know about first,' he winked.

Akari remembered how he had always intended to go to Med School and it suddenly dawned on her where this conversation could lead to.

'A friend from my university offered me to come along,' Nick continued, 'he's something like my tutor, you know. He's friends with the local doctor and we're gonna work on an interesting medial case here. I guess you know the amnesia patient at the clinic?'

Bull's-eye! Akari felt a lump in her throat and suddenly looked down at the floor.

'Oh dear, I'm sorry, did I say something wrong? Oh, of course…he's a friend of yours, isn't he?' he asked and took her hand. 'Sorry, I didn't mean to be so insensitive, I should have known he's a frie-'

'Um…actually he's…more than just a friend,' she replied without looking up.

It took Nick a few seconds to speak again. 'I see. I'm…I'm really sorry, Akari,' he then honestly said and squeezed her hand. 'I promise we'll do anything to help him.'

'Thank you,' she whispered and managed look back up at him.

'So, um…would you be up for a drink at the local Inn? It's my treat! You could use some diversion and we still have a lot catching-up to do after all', he winked. 

* * *

The next day Akari walked into the clinic early afternoon but the front desk was empty. When she looked around she could hear voices from the backroom and quickly recognized it was Jin, Irene, Nick and a fourth person who must have been Nick's friend, she assumed.

'They probably have a meeting', she though aloud as she suddenly recognized the door of Luke's sickroom standing ajar. She slowly approached it and heard a familiar female voice from inside. 'Selena', she whispered to herself and thousands of thoughts suddenly crossed her mind. Selena is in love with Luke - what if he never regains his memory? What if she starts to fall for her? What if? What if? Akari shook her head and tried hard to think straight again as she suddenly heard laughter from behind the door. She silently sneaked a peek inside, her heart beating heavily.

'Oh my god,' Luke exclaimed, 'is that really me? I look awful!'

'That was at the Ocean Festival three years ago. Ozzy caught that real' big fish and Bo threw it right into your face,' Selena giggled.

'That Bo is a little rascal, eh? He's always nice and kind whenever he's coming to visit me though.'

'He's a good boy,' the red haired dancer interposed, 'but you two fight like cat and dog. Well, you _are_ like brothers, so I guess it's normal.'

'Like brothers, huh?' Luke suddenly sighed deeply. 'How come I don't remember him then? I don't feel anything, how can that be? I feel ashamed about it, really.'

'Don't push yourself too hard,' Selena whispered and petted his shoulder. 'It's okay, you just need some time.'

'That's what Akari always says, too.' The corners of Luke's mouth slowly started to form a smile. Meanwhile the young farmer's eyes started to fill with tears when she heard him saying her name.

'Akari, huh? She's visiting you every day I guess?' Selena dryly asked.

'She does,' he replied, still smiling, and raised a brow. 'She really seems to care for me.'

'Um….well…I…I have some more pictures for you. Look here.'

'Hey, you have quite a few pictures, don't you?' Luke smirked but he suddenly looked confused. 'Um, can I ask you something?'

'Yeah, sure.'

'Well, you seem to know me quite well. How…how come you didn't visit me earlier?'

Selena swallowed and started to blush. 'Well…um…we had kind of an argument shortly before New Year's. I…I was a bit afraid to come here. When I heard about your sickness, I was worried to death but…I thought it could confuse you too much when I suddenly show up.'

'An argument, huh? What was it about?'

At that moment Akari backed off from the door, afraid of where their conversation would lead to.

'Akari.'

She winced as Jin suddenly came walking in and called her name.

'Is something wrong?' he inquired.

Akari didn't dare to say a word until she was certain that Luke and Selena didn't realize she was here. 'Um, nothing,' she replied then. 'I just came to visit Luke but I saw he already has company. I-I guess it's better if I come back later.'

Jin sighed. 'Listen, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Selena earlier, I-'

'She already came here before?'

'Um, yeah,' the young doctor replied and started to blush.

'Since when has she been visiting him?'

'Just since yesterday.'

'And…how did he react when he saw her?'

'He was very calm but he showed quite some interest to get to know her.' Jin paused for a moment before he continued. 'I…I couldn't help it but um…I somehow had the impression that he felt he knew her.' He cleared his throat. 'They had a very long talk and they seemed to get along right from the start.'

'M-hm,' Akari swallowed.

'I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to hide it from you or someth-'

'Don't worry,' she interrupted him. 'You're busy enough, plus I knew she would come here sooner or later.'

'Well, I…,' Jin took a deep breath, 'I have to be honest with you: I actually _asked_ Selena to come here, I think it might help Luke when she's around. She hesitated at first but I'm glad she made up her mind.' Speaking as a doctor he knew he did the right thing, but speaking as Akari's friend he felt like he betrayed her. 'Listen, I'm really sorry for not having spoken with you before, I-'

'You don't have to apologize,' Akari suddenly exclaimed. 'You are right, we need to use every chance which could bring back Luke's memory. I'm glad that that you care about him so much. It's…it's good that's Selena's here, we should all stick together now to help Luke.'

Jin smiled proudly at the young farmer. 'Luke is really lucky to have you!'

'Thanks,' Akari gulped. 'Um, I…I should give the two of them some time now. I-I'll come back later, see ya!' And with that she dashed out of the clinic before Jin could say anything in response.

Akari ran as fast as she could, hoping to arrive at her house before the upcoming tears would roll down her cheeks. As soon as she reached her property she sank to the floor in front of her mailbox, unable to stand up again. She knew it wasn't the right time to be jealous and wallow in self-pity but at that very moment she just wished for someone to support and understand her like Luke always did - someone who allowed her to vent her emotions and be weak for just one second. Two single tears fell from her eyes and she crouched on the spot for several minutes until Nick found her.

'Oh my god,' he yelled, 'Akari, are you ok?' He quickly kneeled down next to her grasping her shoulders. 'What's the matter, what's wrong? Talk to me! Let me help you!'

Akari slowly turned her face towards his and looked straight into his eyes. All of a sudden she threw her arms around his neck and wept freely. 'Oh Nick…I…I don't,' she said between sobs, unable to finish the sentence.

'Sssh,' he whispered and carefully embraced her. 'It's okay…it's okay.'

At that moment Akari suddenly felt something she had been afraid of since Nick arrived. He was holding her trembling body just now when she needed someone to support her, even though she allowed herself to be weak when she should be strong. This well known conversance between them, her sudden ease of mind, the comfort – fearing her old feelings for him could possibly boil over again if the two of them would keep getting closer, Akari wanted to break away from Nick's embrace. But she couldn't…she just wanted to be understood. She wanted to vent her emotions. She wanted to be weak…just for once.

**Thanks for reading!**


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